Battery-well.



J. M. FITZ GERALD.

BATTERY WELL.

APPLIOATION FILED SEPT. 27, 1913.

Patented Mar. 9, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

THE NORRIS PETERS CO-. F'HOTO-LITHQ, WASHING roNl D. C

J. M. FITZ GERALD.

BATTERY WELL.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 27, 1913.

1,1 30,808. Patented Mar. 9, 1915.

Z SHEETS-SHEET 2 mt mu. 2? y 5 am 3 THE NORRIS PETERS cow. PHOTO-LITHO WASHING MIN. 0. c.

pnirnn STATES PATENT QFFIQE.

JOHN M. FITZ GERALD, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO THE RAILROAD SUPPLY 00., OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT.

BATTERY-WELL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 9, 1915.

Application filed September 27, 1913. Serial No. 792,082.

' To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, JOHN M. FI'rz GERALD,a citizen of the United States, and

a resident of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Battery-Wells; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in battery wells and consists of the matters herein set forth and more particularly pointed out in the'appended claims.

Battery wells are used in the storage of electric batteries required in the operation of block signal appliances and for other track circuits on railroads, and as heretofore constructed have been heavy and cumbersome, so as to require special railway apparatus for use in installingthem. In addition, on account of their bulk and weight, the expense of transporting such battery wells fromrthe place of manufac ture to the place of installation is considerable. I

The object of my invention is to provide a battery well which is not only cheap and economical of manufacture, but which may be shipped to the point of installation in knock-down form" and may be there assembled and installed by unskilled labor.

The various advantages of my invention will appear as I proceed with my specification.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a view representing a vertical section through my iInproved battery well, taken in a plane indicated by the line 11 of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a view representing a plan of the battery well, with the cover removed. Fig. 3 is a view representing a vertical section through,

tongues 19, 19, the section being 'indiwalls of a' frost box, presently to be described, from the walls of the battery well so as to provide an air space or jacket be tween said walls.

Suitable means are provided for readily and conveniently locking the proximate vertical edges of the four upright walls of the battery well together to form a box, open top and bottom. As shown, the walls 11, 11 are provided at their ends, top and bottom, with vertical, elongated tongues 13 adapted for engagement in complementary elongated grooves 14, that are formed in the marginal parts of the walls 10 where they overlap the vertical edges of the walls 11. he tongues 13 are tapered downwardly and the grooves 14 tapered correspondingly, so that when the walls 11, 11 are slipped into place with the tongues 13 engaged in the grooves 14, a slight blow or upon the upper edges,

pressure downwar of the walls 11, will cause said tongues and grooves to be tightly interlocked, making a corresponding blow or pressure from below necessary to disengage the walls from interlocking engagement.

All of the walls 10, 10, 11, 11 have horizontal flanges 15 at their upper edges to form a seat for a cover plate 16 which, as shown, is in one piece but may be made of separable sections for easy handling. Said cover plate is of flat, pyramidal shape and is provided with depending strengthening ribs 17 in a familiar manner. One edge of the lid has hook extensions 18 which are adapted for engagement with horizontal formed at withlaterally spaced lugs 20, which are Each of the at or near the.

g I the top of one of the walls 10. The other wall 10 is provided.

adapted to embrace a projecting lug Vertical air spaces defined-by te 11i nga eme w t t e. tr ng hen:

battery well.

21 on the cover plate when the same is in closed P n-Y A le u a s d. g ar pe fo a d to receive the clasp of alock22, which locks the cover in closed position on top of the One of the walls 10 has attach'ed to it a trunking box 23in a faniillar manner.

26 indicates the frost box, which issup;

ported within the battery well, and which contains the batteries to be located thereiiil Said box is preferably made of wood, and

consists of upright side members 27, .27 and 28, 28 and of a lid 29 which closes the top ofthe. box: Said lid 29 is made of boards 30, attached together by means of transversely extending parallel barsBl, 81, 32, 32 indicate blocks. attached to said bars' at onnearhthehmiddle to provide handles for lifting the cover. The sidernernbers 27,28 are of such dimensions that they form a box of.crjoss section capableof fitting within the the strengtheningnribs ,12qpf. the battery walls. The battery w all'sll, 11 have horizontal-flanges 33, located above the botto'm'of the battery well. Said flanges actto. support the frost box and. are madewide enough to project inwardly beyond said .wallsfso as to act as a support for a plurality ofparallel', closely spaced ,fioor beams 34. .The. floorbea'ms 34: are attached, together and held 7 in proper spaced relation by meansflofltransverse pars allelbars35, 35, so that thefloor beams may be put into positionas a single structure. The batteries are supported on the .floor beams 34;, The frost box supporting flanges are so llocated as to leave, a considerable air space below the frost. box {and the wheight Qfth f o boxisso. proportioned with'ireference= to the height of ,thebattery wellithat a similar space is left betWfeenthecover of thef frost box and the cover of the battery The battery well is located in an excavar tion in the ground in the usual. manner, it

is shippedjo the point; of installation-. .1n

knockdown, form, and after the excavation is made at the pointat which itis to be .ina ledt the side, 35 10 and. 1 of the well'aredropped intovplace and attached together at their vertical edges as heretofore described. The upright walls 27, 27,', and 80 ,t sif t bo re heai r ed hr ugh t e -P i op of the e y .W l andibrbi ht o ar at f he r o edg s he h zo tal file s s 3., 3 wit t eirau e ing and spac ng ribs l2 of the battery well. Thewalls of the b ttery wellthus hold the wallsof the frost ,box in position from the out ide-- T ?b at hed ogether by the transverse b'ars 35, are thenins; rte d thro g e pe W 121% ms? box and their ends brought to bear on the box and brace said walls from the inside so as to in maintain ng theiri in a vertlCZLl position.

The other oppositely disposedwalls 27, 27 of the frost box are held in vertical position between the upright Ted 'es, of th e walls 28, 28 and theadjacent 515a want-10, 10 of the batterywe'll. The

battery 1 well, isgnow in condition for the installation of the batteries and after the batteries are installed, the cover-29 is placed oni'topof the frost box, and the cover 16 locked .in=place to close the battery well,

Fromthe 'cdnstruction parent that the'frostbox is entirely in'closed by anair jacket, which insulates it so as to prevent it from being subjected to the changes ofitemper'ature in the atmosphere and ground surrounding the battery well; It will also bernotedthat thegbattery well, being open at the bott'onhcthe floor'beains or the frost box and the batteries sup-ported thereby, are exposed to. the "temperatures of described, it is ap.-

the groundbelowthe. battery. well. As this 7 teinpera'ture always. warmer .ini cold weather. than theloutsideair, the batteries, instead of being exposed to the coldatmosphere that maybe inclosed in the frost box when; thepbatteriesiare installed, are sub,- jected, aft r the, batte y; well is. closed, ,to the warmer atmosphere-within the; frost box, due, to .the result of the Warm atmosphere i' ingfroi'm the.fgroundthere nden '5 While in descri ing myin nti naljhave ef r edrto certain. details .of mechanical onstruc i nd a rangemen it i o, he nders od th t theinventionis in no, Way limited thereby except as pointed out in he app nd d l ims: 1 I

I claim as my invention 3' a 1. Almock-down battery well. comprising id Wfl11 ,;m fo detacha ly locking said wallstogether attheir vertical edges to form a box which is open top and bottom, aid Wall eing provided with means on theirinner surfaces defining an air jacket spaced within the box, two opposite walls of the box being providiadwith means fornins; upport l ated a db'ox, and -d n fr stbox ad pt: ed to rest upon. said supports. within the said efi e ilii l et p ce-1 4 i 2. A knock-down battery well, ,comprisns s wal s, m n fo .detachabl 10d:- ing said side walls together at theirvertical edges to form a box open top andgbot m,. aid Walls being provid d with "s acabove v he bott m, o 7

pro i dw hc ang l at dzabo ethe ot: I

o ff a b xy a d kzdowil rostb x adapted to be supported on said flanges and to be contained in the jacket space defined by said spacing ribs.

3. A knock-down battery well, comprising side walls, means for detachably locking said side walls together at their vertical edges to form a box open top and bottom, said walls being provided with spacing ribs to define an air jacket within the box, and two of the opposite walls being provided with flanges located above the bottom of said box, and a knock-down frost box comprising side walls adapted to be assembled together within the battery, and when thus assembled to form a box, open top and bottom, resting upon said flanges and contained within the jacket space defined by said spacing ribs, a floor comprising a plurality of parallel floor beams and transverse members attaching said floor beams together and a removable cover for said frost box, in combination with a separable cover for said battery well, and means for locking the same in position.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing as my invention I aftix my signature in the presence of two witnesses, this 25th day of September A. D. 1913. 4

JOHN M. FITZ GERALD.

Witnesses:

T. H. ALFREDS, GAIL W. DALL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the- Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. 0. a 

